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White Sox Acquire Infielder Leury Garcia from Texas

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Press Release

CHICAGO - The Chicago White Sox have acquired infielder Leury (lay-OOH-ree) Garcia from the Texas Rangers as the player to be named later from the August 9 trade in which Chicago sent outfielder Alex Rios and cash considerations to Texas.

Garcia, 22, is hitting .264 (51-193) with four home runs, 19 RBI, 12 stolen bases and 31 runs scored in 47 games this season with Class AAA Round Rock of the Pacific Coast League. He has made 42 appearances at shortstop and five in center field.

The 5-foot-10, 160-pound Garcia made the Rangers Opening Day roster, batting .192 (10-52) with eight runs scored in 25 games. He made nine starts at second base and two each at shortstop and third before being optioned to Round Rock on June 15. Prior to the season, Garcia was named by Baseball America as the No. 20 Prospect, Fastest Baserunner and Best Infield Arm in the Rangers organization.

A native of Santiago, Dominican Republic, Garcia is a career .261 (468-1,794) hitter with 13 home runs, 143 RBI, 258 runs scored and 155 stolen bases in 475 games over five minor-league seasons in the Rangers organization. He has played in 400 games at shortstop, 58 at second base and 14 in center field.

Garcia, who has been successful on 78.3 percent (155-198) of his career stolen-base attempts in the minor leagues, was cited by Baseball America as the Fastest Baserunner in the Texas organization after the 2011-12 campaigns. He recorded 30-plus steals each season from 2010-12, including a career-high 51 in 2010.

His best season came in 2012 when he batted .292 (110-377) with 11 triples, 31 stolen bases and 55 runs scored in 100 games with Class AA Frisco. Garcia, who will be optioned to Class AAA Charlotte, originally was signed by Texas as a free agent on December 5, 2007.